The House of the Dead 2

"A short, yet bloodlust quenching adventure for the ages!"

This is one of only three Dreamcast games that I will still go back to and play. It really is a great game. I have never once played it with one of those shootey-gun accessories and I'm loving it without that, so it must be quite the party when you do have it.

Story: 7/10
This is among the best ''Cheese Acting'' that I have seen in a while. The characters are very unconvincing while reading their lines, and at the same time, they overact their part. It makes up to be a rather hilarious show to watch. The story doesn't matter anyway, no one pays attention to that when you're busy shooting cyclops zombies. But it's not half bad, and the lack of wonderful story doesn't detract at all from the great gameplay, so I'll give it a generous seven.

Graphics: 8/10
Pretty good for one of those early Dreamcast titles, although it may get dull at times, the overall graphics job is wonderful. The sick colors add to the mood even more, and the green blood is quite a sight to see. The bosses and basic enemies look pretty nice, and there's no real parts where the graphics look too rushed or badly put together, so I'm quite satisfies with what they have done here.

Audio: 7/10
The music isn't bad, it suits the game well and adds to the cheesed-up feeling of cheese death. There's not too much variance in the music, and it may get repetitive, but that's only if you are trying to notice it. I was just fine with the music, but it was definitely not Nobel prize worthy. The sound effects were also well done. They've got some nice sounds for getting shot in the face, or shooting someone in the face that is. Now the voices, that's where the big point value comes from. It's so great watching the people scream and run away while pleading for their life. The final boss's voice script cracks me up every time, and hearing the main characters try to act serious is the best. Yes, I give them points for getting me to laugh at the acting. It's not the kind of bad acting where you just roll your eyes, it's the type of bad acting that brings a smirk to my face. That's what I like in a game. *Smirks*

Gameplay: 9/10
I can't tell you what it's like or how fun it is to play with a gun, since I've never tried it. But just playing using the regular control was quite the experience. You can adjust the speed of your cursor, so that helps out a lot. But the controls are simple and easy to use, while at the same time will provide you with smooth shooting action.

The training mode is among the best features of the game, providing you with a few more hours of play time. There's about 20 different courses, that you can beat 5 times each with increasing difficulty, until you have them mastered. There are a few select ones that were particularly entertaining.

As far as difficulty goes, I'd give this a good score, because you can adjust the difficulty to how you want it. The easiest mode will let you have plenty of lives, and an easy ride through the game, but you can make it harder for yourself and try to master all of the game play modes doing so.

Replay Value: 9/10
I still find myself returning to this game to play it occasionally. When you have a second player playing with you, it's thrice the fun, and you can have someone make fun of the bad acting with you. Even playing alone delivers good replay value, and I know I'll continue to enjoy this game in the future.

Overall: 8/10
So if you can find it, go rent it, or even buy it off eBay if you want a good game for a good price. It's well worth the time and money wasted, and it will teach you the real meaning of poor acting skills. (Sorry, Bomberman Generation. This game beats you for worst acting.)

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/08/02, Updated 07/08/02